In light of the recent increase in complaints that modern games include “unrealistic and ridiculous” diversity of characters, I offer two new challenges for our Grouvee family to complete this year.
The first challenge being to continue pushing back against those who deem that we are unworthy of being represented in games.
The second being…
The Diverse Experiences Challenge
Play a game with a character who…
OR
Play a game developed by someone who…
is neurodivergent
has experienced a traumatic event
has a physical disability
is a different race than you
identifies as transgender, nonbinary, or genderqueer
has a mental illness
is LGBTQIA+
is indigenous
is a member of a diaspora
is a refugee or fleeing persecution
There are several ways you can go about completing this challenge:
Have a different game for each prompt.
Use the same game for multiple prompts to which they apply.
Mix and match with games that have diverse characters or diverse developers.
Complete the challenge twice, once for diverse characters and once for diverse developers.
Play games that complete the prompt, character, AND developer requirements simultaneously.
And thank you @BMO for helping bring this all together. If anyone else has ideas on how to improve this challenge or offer more prompts for any representation we overlooked, suggest away!
Feel free to help others by suggesting games that would fulfill said prompts but please keep in mind to not spoil specific moments or character reveals that may be better enjoyed blind.
Great idea! I’ll try to update this post as I make my way through the challenge, but for now I’d definitely recommend Honor Bound from Harris Powell-Smith. It’s a stat-driven text adventure with a physically disabled protagonist, and it’s got a free demo!
Really excellent trans and gay rep as well, but for me it stood out by making physical limitations an unavoidable (if not super huge) part of the story. My character had their knee shattered during a hurricane and had to use a cane.
I like the idea, not sure ill have enough time to finish it. I may have some coincidentally played games that hit the mark.
I guess twchnically ive already hit one, as i played AC Mirage and Basim is most definitely a different race from me lol
Edit: my partner said shes already done a mental health and a traumatic event game as she played Alice: Madness Returns (i wont mention that this was like a year and a half ago lol)
Yeah I enjoyed it! Not my favorite Choicescript game by a long shot, but there’s an impressive amount of narrative branching and all the locations are lushly described.
On another topic, but still within the purview of this thread I think, I’d be curious if any of y’all have played games featuring characters with OCD. It’s a daily annoyance for me, but I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a convincing depiction of it in a videogame.
On another topic, but still within the purview of this thread I think, I’d be curious if any of y’all have played games featuring characters with OCD. It’s a daily annoyance for me, but I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a convincing depiction of it in a videogame.
I couldn’t think of any games or characters off the top of my head so I tried to search for some and I’m not seeing anything coming up. :((
Though I’d imagine there are some games with gameplay mechanics that are OCD friendly? I don’t know if that’s a thing so I’m sorry if that doesn’t make any sense. I’m not too aware of OCD in general. I don’t know if there’s any other forms of media you’d recommend for others to become more knowledgeable about it.
I am not very good a challenges to be honest, I am always behind what in my “I wanna play this” backlog, but I’d love to stick around and here your thoughts. But if something calls my attention and it is not too long to play I might join the ride
Regarding Traumatic Events (and I think somehow includes OCD in some aspects) I think some games from Heart Machine fall under that scope, particularly Solar Ash.
Heart Machine’s founder Alx Preston was also born with a congenital heart disorder and has multiple medical conditions as a result. It’s why he named his company Heart Machine. I’m playing Hyper Light Breaker now and might count that towards the challenge.
Doesn’t have to be the main character. I also had to Google diaspora hahaha. That prompt was from @BMO. Before the challenge was out, I was already learning new things.
Is also IP by a TERF whose influence has shaped actual anti-Trans bills. I’d personally feel uneasy about playing that one for a challenge like this, especially since she benefits. I think it might be different if she was long passed and wasn’t directly benefiting from media works based on her writing.
What about Hellblade: Seuna’s Sacrifice?
Senua is a Pict whos lover was killed and is suffering from Psychosis.
The depiction of her psychosis was generally reviewed to be well represented and the developers consulted with neuroscientists, mental health professionals, and people living with the condition.